Date: 7/24/2018

English मराठी


24-Jul-2018 EARTH SET TO RUN OUT OF RESOURCES TWO DAYS SOONER THIS YEAR, SAYS STUDY Read More August 1 will mark the day humanity’s annual demand for natural resources will exceed what the planet’s ecosystem can provide for the year, a date that has arrived two days sooner than last year. The day is marked as Earth Overshoot Day, illustrating the point at which the consumption of resources such as carbon, food, water and wood exceeds the capacity of nature to regenerate “It is barely eight months into the year and we have already used up the nature’s budget for the entire year. The fact that the overshoot day is constantly moving up the calendar from late September in 1997 to its earliest yet in 2018 is symbolic of the unprecedented pressure mankind and human activities are putting on nature and its resources,” said Dr Sejal Worah, conservation director, WWF-India. The Global Footprint Network, an international think tank that calculates the Earth Overshoot Day by coordinating research, said that at the current rate of consumption and waste production, humanity will need 1.7 earths to satisfy its exploitative needs. “Our economies are running a Ponzi scheme with our planet. We are using the Earth’s future resources to operate in the present and digging ourselves deeper,” said Mathis Wackernagel, chief executive of the Global Footprint Network, in a press release. “Each day this date moves up is a stark reminder of the fact that we are running out of time to reverse the trend,” said Dr Sejal Worah, conservation director, WWF-India. The rate at which the overshoot date is moving up the calendar, however, has slowed. Over the last five years, on average, the day has moved less than a day a year, compared to three days a year on average since overshoot began in 1970s. Last year, the day came on August 3. “This is not an absolute date on which natural resources run out but represents a trend that we need to roll back to a date as close to December 31 as possible. The ‘business as usual’ attitude will not help,” said Dr Rajiv Seth, pro vice chancellor at TERI School of Advanced Studies in New Delhi. The Earth Overshoot Day is calculated by taking into account “biologically productive land and sea area, including forest lands, grazing lands, cropland, fishing grounds, and built-up land”, and comparing their state with a population’s demand for plant-based food and fibre products, livestock and fish products, timber and other forest products, space for urban infrastructure, and forest to absorb its carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels.
24-Jul-2018 ORIGAMI-INSPIRED UNDERWATER TRAP HELPS STUDY DELICATE MARINE CREATURES Read More The device was tested in the open ocean at a depth of 1,600 to 2,300 ft. Studying soft-bodied deep sea creatures like jellyfish and squid have been a difficult task for marine biologists as existing underwater tools cause damage or even kill them. Now, researchers from Harvard University’s Wyss Institute have developed an origami-inspired sampler using folding polyhedral sides that can trap deep sea soft creatures without causing them any harm. The research was recently published in Science Robotics. “Origami, the Japanese art of folding, is used as an inspiration to help us build 3D objects from 2D sheets.We have developed a way to fold 3D shapes from its 2D net using only one actuator [component responsible for movement],” explains Dr. Zhi Ern Teoh from the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University in an email to The Hindu. “Minimizing the number of actuators is key because incorporating actuators is a relatively more complex engineering task and you have to figure out ways of attaching, powering, sensing and coordinating the folds. Therefore even though the system of linkages looks more complex, it consists entirely of revolute joints which are mechanically much simpler.”
24-Jul-2018 GRAPHIC NOVEL IN BOOKER PRIZE LONGLIST FOR THE FIRST TIME Read More U.S. cartoonist Nick Drnaso’s novel “Sabrina” is on a list featuring four debut works and four authors under the age of 30 besides Golden Booker winner Michael Ondaatje. Seven of the 13 authors are women. A graphic novel was longlisted for the Booker Prize for Fiction for the first time on July 24, with Nick Drnaso’s novel Sabrina in contention for the prestigious award. The U.S. cartoonist was among the 13 authors longlisted for the prize which markets itself as the leading literary award in the English-speaking world. He is up against Michael Ondaatje, longlisted just weeks after he won the Golden Booker a one-off accolade to mark the prize’s 50th anniversary for his 1992 award joint-winner The English Patient. The Canadian’s seventh novel, Warlight, is on a list featuring four debut works and four authors under the age of 30. Six longlisted writers were from Britain, three are from the United States and there are two each from Ireland and Canada. Seven of the 13 authors are women. “Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the times, there were many dystopian fictions on our bookshelf and many novels we found inspirational as well as disturbing,” said philosopher Kwame Anthony Appiah, who chairs the five-strong judging panel. “Some of those we have chosen for this longlist feel urgent and topical, others might have been admired and enjoyed in any year.“All of these books... capture something about a world on the brink.” The other judges are crime writer Val McDermid; cultural critic Leo Robson; feminist writer Jacqueline Rose, and artist and graphic novelist Leanne Shapton. ‘Oblique, subtle, minimal’-The judges said it was only a matter of time before a graphic novel was longlisted. “Sabrina makes demands on the reader in precisely the way all good fiction does. Oblique, subtle, minimal, unmanipulative: the style of the pictures is the book’s worldview,” they said. The novel is described as “the story of what happens when an intimate, ‘everyday’ tragedy collides with the appetites of the 24-hour news cycle”. Until 2013, the Booker Prize was awarded for the best original full-length novel written in English by a citizen of the Commonwealth, the Republic of Ireland or Zimbabwe. But the field was then widened to any novel originally written in English and published in Britain. The move was a bid to stamp the prize’s authority as the English-speaking world’s foremost literary award, crucially by opening it to U.S. writers. The rules have been changed this year to include books published in Ireland.
24-Jul-2018 PM MODI ADDRESSES INDIAN COMMUNITY IN KAMPALA; INDIA-UGANDA EXCHANGE 3 MOUS Read More The Red carpet rolled out for Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he touched down in Ugandan capital Kampala. Getting straight down to business, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a one on one meeting with President of Uganda. Delegation-level talks between the two leaders followed. PM Modi announced two Lines of Credit worth nearly $200 mn; PM addressed Indian community in Kampala. PM Modi thanked President Museveni for his long association with India and for taking special care of people of Indian origin in Uganda. PM also recalled the various interactions he had with the Ugandan President with warmth. India and Uganda exchanged 3 MoUs covering the defence sector, cultural exchanges and diplomatic passport holders Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that India will continue to assist Uganda in its growth journey in every possible field. He also announced a gift of a state of the art Cancer therapy machine to the Uganda Cancer Institute. President Museveni praised Prime Minister Modi for his administrative accumen and said that he is an example for all to follow.Later, PM Modi addressed the Indian community in Kampala India-Uganda ties are clearly moving from strength to strength under PM Modi's leadership. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the Ugandan Parliament on 25july. This will be the first such address by any Indian Prime Minister.
24-Jul-2018 PM MODI GIFTS COWS TO VILLAGERS AT RWERU MODEL VILLAGE Read More Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Rweru Model Village in Rwanda and gifted 200 cows to villagers, under the Rwandan Government's Girinka Programme. Under this scheme, poor families are gifted dairy cows and the first female calf born of the cow is gifted to the neighbor, thus promoting brotherhood and solidarity in the community. It is a social protection scheme run by the Rwandan Government. The word Girinka can be translated as 'may you have a cow'. It describes a centuries-old cultural practice in the country under which a cow was given by one person to another, as a sign of respect and gratitude. Prime Minister appreciated the Girinka Programme. He said people in India too would be pleasantly surprised to see the cow being given such importance as a means of economic empowerment in villages, in faraway Rwanda. Prime Minister also interacted with villagers there. Speaking on the occasion, the Prime Minister appreciated the Girinka Programme, and President Paul Kagame's initiative in this regard. Prime Minister also suggested that India can help the Rwandan government in honey bee-keeping process under the Grinka scheme. On the first leg of three-nation tour, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Kigali Genocide Memorial in Rwanda. Kigali memorial set up in memory of the victims of the 1994 genocide. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also interacted with the Indian community in Rwanda. Prime Minister praised the Indian community for their contribution in development of Rwanda and for their community service. PM said that, the Indian diaspora is making a mark all over the world. PM said that govt has taken various reform measures, which is leading to a transparent system in India. Prime Minister also said that India is among the fastest growing economy in the world. PM also invited members of Indian community to visit Kashi on the occasion of Pravasi Bharati Divas in India. Members of the Indian community thanked PM Modi for his steps to solve their problems including a decision to open High Commission in Rwanda.
24-Jul-2018 NORTH KOREA BEGINS DISMANTLING NUCLEAR AND BALLISTIC MISSILE FACILITIES: ANALYSIS Read More North Korea has begun dismantling key facilities at a site used to develop engines for ballistic missiles, according to an analysis of satellite imagery of the location, the first significant step towards denuclearisation following last month's historic summit between Kim Jong-un and US President Donald. The Sohae Satellite Launching Station has been the main site for North Korean satellite launches since 2012. The testing facilities at the site are thought to play a role in the development of liquid-fuel engines that can also be used in North Korea's ballistic missile programme. The images published by 38 North, a US-based website focused on North Korea that is affiliated with the Stimson Center in Washington, were taken on July 20 and July 22, respectively. New commercial satellite imagery of the Sohae station indicates that the North has begun dismantling key facilities, the 38 North said in a report. If the analysis of the satellite imagery is accurate, North Korea may be taking a small but significant step toward the disarmament that was agreed upon by the North Korean leader and President Trump during a landmark meeting in Singapore on June 12, it said. Most notably, these include the rail-mounted processing building, where space launch vehicles are assembled before moving them to the launch pad, and the nearby rocket engine test stand used to develop liquid-fuel engines for ballistic missiles and space launch vehicles, the 38 North said. Since these facilities are believed to have played an important role in the development of technologies for the North's intercontinental ballistic missile programme, these efforts represent a significant confidence building measure on the part of North Korea, the North Korea-focused website said. According to 38 North, commercial satellite imagery of the launch pad from July 20 shows that the rail-mounted processing/transfer structure has been moved to the middle of the pad, exposing the underground rail transfer point, one of the few times it has been seen in this location. The roof and supporting structure have been partially removed and numerous vehicles are present, including a large construction crane, it said, adding that an image from two days later shows the continued presence of the crane and vehicles.
24-Jul-2018 NO SALE OF BS-VI NON-COMPLIANT VEHICLES FROM APRIL 1, 2020 Read More Centre tell SC, Sale and manufacture of BS-VI non-compliant vehicles in India should not be allowed from April 1, 2020; In an affidavit filed in the apex court, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said that it would not be possible to segregate pricing of diesel or have a differential pricing mechanism for the fuel for private vehicles. The sale and manufacture of BS-VI non-compliant vehicles in India BS-VI non-compliant vehicles as it would lessen environmental benefits to be accrued from using cleaner BS-VI fuel, the Centre told the Supreme Court. In an affidavit filed in the apex court, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) said that it would not be possible to segregate pricing of diesel or have a differential pricing mechanism for the fuel for private vehicles.
24-Jul-2018 COPPER SHORTAGE PUTS SMALL, MEDIUM UNITS IN A BIND Read More Copper consuming units in the South, especially in the small and medium scale, find themselves in a jam. An acute shortage of copper has not only thrown their cost calculations haywire but also hit hard their delivery schedules. Articulating their escalating pain at a press conference here on 24july, representatives of Copper Consumers’ Association of South India said the closure of the Toothukudi unit of Sterlite had pushed the 75-odd member units into a crisis. The Sterlite unit, they said, accounted for nearly 40% of the country’s total production. The small and medium copper consuming units in the south depended on the Sterlite unit for their copper needs. The closure of Sterlite unit in its wake had forced many of these units to default on their delivery schedules. To a question, Hemanth Mehta, treasurer of the association, said that copper imports weren’t that easy option. ``Import of copper at such a short notice is not possible as most of the contracts are already done. The transit time is long and the overall cost of imports is much higher as compared to sourcing from within,’’ the association said. Also, imported copper pushed up costs by nearly 10%, he said. The situation, he said, could have negative cost implications for their downstream clients. The 75-odd members of the association collectively employed 15,000-20,000 people. If the copper shortage persisted for a long time, a 30% job reduction across its member-units could become imminent, they said. They urged the government and stakeholders concerned to find an early and amicable solution to the demand-supply mismatch in copper. To a question, they said that the Sterlite imbroglio should find a quick and workable resolution encompassing all critical factors including jobs, pollution and the like.
24-Jul-2018 INDIA DROPS THREE RANKS IN AT KEARNEY FDI CONFIDENCE INDEX Read More GST implementation challenges, demonetisation may have deterred investors’India in 2018 has fallen out of the top 10 destinations for FDI in terms of its attractiveness, according to an AT Kearney report, which says this could be due to teething troubles in the implementation of the goods and services tax and the government’s demonetisation decision in 2016. India ranks 11 in the 2018 AT Kearney FDI Confidence Index, down from 8 in 2017 and 9 in 2016. “Some policies, however, may have deterred investors at least in the short term,” the report said. “The 2017 nationwide goods and services tax, for example, has faced implementation challenges, and the 2016 demonetisation initiative disrupted business activity and weighed on economic growth.” That said, the report highlighted several of the reforms such as removing the Foreign Investment Promotion Board and liberalising FDI limits in key sectors that have maintained India’s high rankings in terms of FDI attractiveness. Notable reforms done -“Notable reforms include the elimination of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board, a government agency responsible for reviewing all potential foreign investment, and the liberalisation of foreign investment thresholds for the retail, aviation, and biomedical industries,” the report said.